Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart makes surprisingly unique history as New York Giants select him in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft
Jaxson Dart finally silenced all the doubters as the New York Giants selected him in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. The former Ole Miss Rebels quarterback had been subject to all sorts of concerns from critics about Lane Kiffin's scheme, his arm strength (somehow), and ability to process at the NFL level, […]
Jaxson Dart finally silenced all the doubters as the New York Giants selected him in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
The former Ole Miss Rebels quarterback had been subject to all sorts of concerns from critics about Lane Kiffin's scheme, his arm strength (somehow), and ability to process at the NFL level, but none of that seemed to deter the New York Giants.
In fact, they made sure not to sit back and wait on landing Jaxson Dart. The Giants traded up into round one to select the former Ole Miss star with the 25th overall pick in the first round on Thursday, making some surprisingly unique history for both New York and the Rebels.
By being taken at 25th overall Jaxson Dart becomes the first non-Manning quarterback to be selected in the first round in the history of the Ole Miss Rebels college football program. He's the first round Ole Miss quarterback drafted in the last two decades (the first since Eli Manning). Archie Manning is the only other first round quarterback in Ole Miss' history and we have to go back to 1971 for that one.
Jaxson Dart also follows in the footsteps of his mentor and Ole Miss great Eli Manning by becoming a New York Giant–albeit via more conventional methods (Dart wasn't immediately traded for another QB like Philip Rivers was for Manning).
Dart also becomes just the fifth QB that the Giants have ever selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. The only others? Daniel Jones, Philip Rivers (traded for Eli Manning), Phil Simms, and Lee Grosscup (back in 1959).
Beyond just making both Ole Miss Rebels and New York Giants history, Jaxson Dart also signifies a potentially massive shift in quarterback scouting. Why? Jaxson Dart is an analytics darling that would not (likely) have been selected this early a handful of years ago.
Dart finished the 2024 season ranked first in yards per play, adjusted yards per pass attempt, and passer rating. Top five in EPA per play, total yards per game, and total QBR. All those marks completely destroyed Shedeur Sanders' profile across the board, yet many in the NFL media and scouting community somehow saw Sanders as the better prospect.
Many NFL teams would have likely seen Sanders as the better player just a few short years ago (and some of them still did), but thanks likely in part to the league's embrace of smart data driven decisions, quarterbacks like Dart can be selected earlier than before.
The concerns about Lane Kiffin's scheme are real. He does gives his quarterbacks all the answers they need to succeed if they're smart enough to make the right pre and post-snap reads. Yes, the play calls and snap count(s) will be far more intricate. And yes, Jaxson Dart certainly fall shorts of Josh Allen-level first round pick arm strength too.
Dart going in the first round might confuse some, but the important thing to remember is that he was just extremely efficient, smart with the ball, and added value via his legs throughout a large 40+ game career in college. That matters, regardless of any schematic or peak athletic trait concerns.
The New York Giants got a good one. Let's hope Jaxson Dart continues making history for both the Ole Miss Rebels and his new NFL team here soon.
We'll be back with more Ole Miss Rebels coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
And if you want to be reminded of how special Jaxson Dart was for Ole Miss and exactly why he ended up being selected by the New York Giants in round one just take a look at his 2024 season highlights below!
